This invention relates to a converter for the adaption of a water condensed refrigeration system, such as the type of system used in an industrial water chiller, to permit operation in a water condensation mode, an air condensation mode, or a combination air/water condensation mode. Although the converter may be incorporated in new equipment, this invention is particularly intended for use in the adaptation of existing chiller systems to the utilization of an additional air cooled condenser with minimum modification of the existing piping.
Water condensed refrigeration systems are commonly employed in industrial water chillers which are used for the cooling of the operating parts of industrial equipment. The high pressure refrigerant gas leaving the compressor in such a system is condensed in a water-cooled condenser; in most installations the heat of condensation is, for all practical purposes, wasted. In these times of high energy costs, it is desirable to utilize the heat given off by the condensation of the refrigerant gas.
One way to use this heat is to employ an air cooled condenser for the refrigerant gas and use this condenser as a space heater for the plant. Because such a space heater would not be utilized during the warmer months of the year, it is generally considered necessary that such an air cooled condenser be connected in series with the existing water cooled condenser so that condensing capacity is provided during the warmer months of the year. In the past, the addition of an air cooled condenser in series with an existing condenser required the disconnection and connection of many joints and fittings in the refrigerant conduit, most of which were soldered. An addition of this type required considerable work and expense along with the inherent danger of leakage and loss of the refrigerant gas.